Skin-to-Skin Contact Beginning in the Delivery Room for Colombian Mothers and Their Preterm Infants

To determine if the transition to extrauterine life is facilitated by skin-to-skin contact, six relatively low risk preterm infants experienced six continuous hours of skin-to-skin contact on their mothers' chests beginning within 30 minutes of birth. Heart and respiratory rates and oxygen saturation remained within normal limits and all infant temperatures rose rapidly to thermoneutral range. Two infants developed grunting respirations by the time skin-to-skin contact began, but the grunting disappeared with warm, humidified oxygen and continuous skin-to-skin contact. All infants were fully breastfeeding and ready for discharge by 24-48 hours postbirth. Early skin-to-skin contact was safe and seemed beneficial for these relatively low risk preterm infants.